Fish pole holder

ABSTRACT

A device for supporting a fishing rod in an inclined position alongside a container such as a minnow container or the like. The device comprises a frame engaging the container wall and a pair of bracket arms secured to and extending outwardly from the frame providing support means for the rod. The bracket arms are laterally spaced from each other and include a lower support member for accommodating the portion of the rod rearwardly of the reel and an upper support member for accommodating the portion of the rod forwardly of the reel.

United States Patent Hermanson 14 1 May 2, 1972 [541 FISH POLE HOLDER2,302,300 11/1942 Davies ..24s/2o1ux [72] Inventor: Everet T.-Hermanson, 2318 Mannheim 2'555o73 5/1795] Zdankoskl Rd., Melrose Park,Ill. 60164 Filed: Dec.'l7, 1969 Appl. No.: 885,903

US. Cl. ..43/2l.2, 43/545 R, 43/55, 248/42, 248/201 Int. Cl. ..A0lk97/10 Field of Search ..43/2l.2, 54.5, 55, 56; 248/42, 248/20l, 226 A;220/85 D [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,773,603 GronekPrimary Examiner-Samuel Koren Assistant Examiner-Daniel J. LeachAttorney-Olson, Trexler, Wolters & Bushnell [5 7] ABSTRACT A device forsupporting a fishing rod in an inclined position alongside a containersuch as a minnow container or the like. The device comprises a frameengaging the container wall and a pair of bracket arms secured to andextending outwardly from the frame providing support means for the rod.The bracket arms are laterally spaced from each other and include alower support member for accommodating the portionlof the rod rearwardlyof the reel and an upper support member Gates ..43 54.5 ..43 s4.5x

for accommodating the portion of the rod forwardly of the reel.

8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures FISH POLE HOLDER DISTINCTION OVER PRIOR ARTAND OBJECTS The lay fisherman, as well as the avid fishing enthusiast,has found that, while fishing, he must be relieved of holding thefishing rod so that he may give his arm a rest or perform other dutiesthat might arise. While this must be done, most fishermen do not wish togive up valuable fishing time during such periods. Hence, under suchcircumstances it has been common practice to place the rod either uponthe bank or to secure the rod handle in a crevice, as between two rocks.This is not only inconvenient, but in some cases provides inadequatesupport for the fishing rod.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a noveland very practical device for holding a fish rod to a container such asa minnow container or bucket.

A more particular object of the present invention is to provide a rodholding device capable of supporting a fishing rod on a container as setforth above which is such that the rod will extend in a given directionregardless of the position of the minnow bucket, that is to say,regardless of the location of the bucket on the left or right of theuser.

Additional objects and features of the invention pertain to theparticular structure and arrangement whereby the above objects areobtained.

The invention, both to its structure and mode of operation, will bebetter understood by reference to the following disclosure and drawingsforming a part thereof, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the fishing rod holder attached to aminnow container with a fishing rod held in a first operable positionthereon;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the fishing rod holder incombination with the minnow container and fishing rod as viewed from theleft in FIG. I, the minnow bucket being shown in fragmentary section;

FIG. 3 is a front sectional view of the fishing rod holder incombination with the minnow container and fishing rod taken along line3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a top view of the fishing rod holder in combination with theminnow container and fishing rod as shown in FIG. 1; and,

FIG. 5 is a front sectional view of the fishing rod holder incombination with the minnow container and fishing rod taken along line3-3 of FIG. 2 with the fishing rod held in a second operable position.

Referring now to FIG. l,'a minnow container is shown with a fishing rod12 held thereto by a fishing rod holder 14, which holder is constructedin accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention. The rod isshown in an operable fishing position, i.e., a natural inclined fishingposition, with a fishing line 16 extending into lake 16a. The fishingrod is independently supported by holder 14 so that the fisherman mayrest his arm or attend to other matters while still continuing hisfishing.

The minnow container 10 is a cylindrical-type container including anouter cylindrical wall portion 17 and an upper edge I8 extending aroundthe top of cylindrical wall 17 so that the holder 14 can be attachedthereto as described hereinafter. It is to be understood that the minnowcontainer, per se, does not form a part of the invention hereindisclosed and claimed and any type of container which is readily used bya fisherman is sufficient.

The holder 14 comprises two laterally spaced lower rod support members20a and 20b, each of which respectively aids in the support of fishingrod 12 when the rod is in a first and second position described below.The rod 12, in a first position, extends upward to the right, as viewedin FIG. 1, so that lower rod support member 20a supports the portion ofthe fishing rod handle 21 positioned rearwardly of fishing reel 21a. Thefishing rod holder is also capable of holding the fishing rod in asecond position such that the rod 12 extends upward to the left, asviewed in FIG. 5, so that the end of rod handle 21 is supported by lowerrod support member 20b rather than 20a.

Returning to FIG. 1, two upper support members 22a and 22b arerespectively connected to lower rod support members 20a and 20b by meansdescribed below and are attached to the minnow container 10 at the edge18 in a manner described hereinafter. The upper support member 22b aidsin supporting the rod 12 at a point on rod handle 21 forwardly offishing reel 21a, as viewed in FIG. 1, when the fishing rod is in itsfirst position as described above. When the rod is held in its secondposition, as shown in FIG. 5, the upper support member 22a co-operateswith lower support member 20b in the same manner as described withrespect to lower support member 20a and upper support member 2212 ofposition one so that the fishing rod extends upwardly to the left asviewed in FIG. 5. A connecting member 23 connects upper support members220 and 22b while additionally acting as a fulcrum for holding thefishing rod holder 14 against outer wall 17 of the minnow container.

Turning to FIG. 2, the upper support member 22a is L- shaped having ahorizontal portion 24 which extends out from the minnow container 10when the holder 14 is attached thereto and a vertical portion 25 whichextends up from one end of horizontal portion 24 and adjacent thecylindrical wall 17 of container 10. The free end of vertical portion 25is integrally connected to a downward-extending flange 26 by a bight 27so as to hook over the edge 18 of container 10 for affixing the supportmember thereto. The support member 220 can be rigidly secured to thecontainer 10 by a set screw 31 which co-operates with a threaded borethrough vertical portion 25 and is screwed therethrough so as to pressagainst wall portion 17. A flange 29 integrally connected to the freeend of horizontal portion 24 extends downward and perpendicular to thehorizontal portion so as to form a bracket for contiguously connectingthe lower support member 20a thereto as described below.

The lower support member 20a is also L-shaped and has a vertical portion30 which is contiguously connected to flange 29 by a nut and screwassembly 32. The vertical portion 30 extends vertically above andvertically below horizontal portion 24 of the upper support member 22aand prevents the fishing rod 12 from sliding off the upper supportmember 22a when the fishing rod is in the above described secondposition. The lower support member 20a further includes a horizontalportion 34 with a vertically extending flange 36 integrally connected toits free end. As seen in FIG. 2, the horizontal portion 34 extendsinwardly toward the container 10 and below the horizontal portion 24 ofupper support member 22a for supporting the fishing rod 12 in a firstposition as described above while the vertically extending flange 36prevents the fishing rod handle 21 from sliding off lower support member200.

The lower support member 20b and upper support member 22b arestructurally equivalent to described lower and upper support members 20aand 22a, respectively, with an exception discussed hereinafter.Therefore, the individual components of support members 20b and 22b aredesignated with numerals identical to those of support members 200 and22a with the additional suffix a." A detailed discussion of supportmembers 20b and 22b is omitted and reference should be made to the abovedescription of support members 20a and 22a. The upper support member 22bis attached to the edge 18 of the container 10 in the same manner asmember 22a and a sufficient distance from upper support member 22a sothat the fishing rod holder 14 may provide adequate support for thefishing rod 12, as seen in FIG. 1, FIG. 3 and FIG. 5.

The connecting member 23 is connected at one end to the vertical portion25 of upper support member 22a by a screw 38 while its otherwise freeend is connected in the same manner to vertical portion 25a of upper.support member 22b by screw 38a. As seen in FIG. 4, the connectingmember 23 is arcuate in shape having a radius of curvature equal to theradius of curvature of the wall portion 17 of container 10 and fitscontiguously against wall portion 17.

It also can be seen in FIG. 4 that horizontal portions 24 and 24a ofupper support members 220 and 22b, respectively, are laterally spacedand parallel to each other. This parallel relaportions 24 and 24atowards each other from a position radially outward from wall portion17. The bent portions of the upper support members are indicated at 40and 40a, respectively, and form the only structural difference therein.

Turning to FIG. 3, it can be seen that the rod 12 may be supported inthe first position by inserting the free end of rod handle 21 betweenthe horizontal portion 34 of lower support member 20a and horizontal 7portion 24 of upper support member 220 so that the free end of handle21, which is rearwardly of reel 21a, rests against the underside ofhorizontal portion 24 while the other end thereof, forwardly of reel21a, rests on the horizontal portion 24a of upper support member 22b. Itis to be assumed that the line 16 of rod 12 is maintained in the lake orother such fishing spot 16a which is located to the right of minnowcontainer as viewed in FIG. 1 and which, if shown, would be located tothe right of the container as viewed in FIG. 3.

The above discussion, with reference to FIG. 3, is a description of afirst position assuming the container 10 is, for example, to the left ofa fisherman while the fisherman is facing the lake 16a. If the fishermanwould rather have the minnow container 10 to his right while facing thelake such that the line 16 would still be positioned within the lake,this could be done by rotating the minnow container 180 about itslongitudinal axis and repositioning the fishing rod in rod holder 14 inits second position as seen in FIG. 5. This second position is similarto the first position described above except that the horizontal portion34a of lower support member 20b functionally replaces horizontal portion34 of lower support member 20a and horizontal portion 24 of uppersupport member 22a functionally replaces horizontal portion 24a of uppersupport member 22b.

Whether the fishing rod 12 is held to the minnow container in the abovedescribed first or second position depends upon whether the fishermanfeels more comfortable with the minnow container to his left or to hisright but in either case the fishing rod holder 14, as described above,allows the rod to be positioned so that line 16 may remain in the lake.

While a particular embodiment of the invention has been shown, it shouldbe understood, of course, that the invention is not limited theretosince many modifications may be made; and it is, therefore, contemplatedto cover by the appended claims any such modifications that fall withinthe true spirit and scope of the invention.

What is claimed is:

l. A device for supporting a fishing rod in an operable position on theouter wall of a container, as for example a bucket, including framemeans, means for supporting said frame means on the outer wall of saidcontainer, bracket means carried by said frame means for accommodatingthe hand gripping extremity ofa fishing rod, said bracket meansincluding a lower support member for accommodating the portion of afishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishing reel supportingsection of a rod, and an upper laterally spaced support member foraccommodating the portion of a fishing rod positioned forwardly of saidreel supporting section said upper and lower support members being sodisposed as to support a fishing rod in a position externally of andsubstantially tangential with respect to a wall of said container.

2. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 1 whereinsaid upper and lower support members are substantially L-shaped eachhaving a respective vertical portion and a respective horizontalportion. whereby said hand gripping extremity is supported by saidhorizontal portions.

3. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 2 whereinsaid means for supporting said frame means includes hook meansco-operating with an upper edge of said outer wall whereby said framemeans is supported adjacent the outer wall of said container by saidhook means.

4. A device for supporting a fishing rod in an operable position on theouter wall of a container, as for example a bucket,

' including frame means, means for supporting said frame means on theouter wall of said container, bracket means carried by said frame meansfor accommodating the hand gripping extremity of a fishing rod, saidbracket means including a lower support member for accommodating theportion of a fishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishingreel supporting section of a rod, and an upper laterally spaced supportmember for accommodating the portion of a fishing rod positionedforwardly of said reel supporting section, said means for supportingsaid frame means further including means for rigidly holding said framemeans adjacent said outer wall.

5. A de'vice for supporting a fishing rod in an operable position on theouter wall of a container, as for example a bucket, including framemeans, means for supporting said frame means on the outer wall of saidcontainer, bracket means carried by said frame means for accommodatingthe hand gripping extremity ofa fishing rod, said bracket meansincluding a lower support member for accommodating the portion of afishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishing reel supportingsection of a rod, an upper laterally spaced support member foraccommodating the portion of a fishing rod posi tioned forwardly of saidreel supporting section, a second lower support member for accommodatingthe portion of a fishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishingreel supporting section of a rod, said second lower support memberpositionedv directly below said upper support member, and a second uppersupport member for accommodating the portions of a fishing rodpositioned forwardly of said reel supporting section, said second uppersupport member positioned directly above said lower support memberwhereby said 6. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim5 wherein all of said support members are substantially L- shaped havingrespective vertical and horizontal portions, the horizontal portions ofsaid lower and upper support members supporting said fishing rod in saidoperable position and the horizontal portions of said second lower andupper support member supporting said fishing rod in said second operableposition.

7. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 6 whereinsaid means for supporting said frame means includes hook meansco-operating with an upper edge of said outer wall whereby said framemeans is supported adjacent the outer wall of said container by saidhook means.

8. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 7 whereinsaid means for supporting said frame means further includes means forrigidly holding said frame means adjacent said outer wall.

1. A device for supporting a fishing rod in an operable position on theouter wall of a container, as for example a bucket, including framemeans, means for supporting said frame means on the outer wall of saidcontainer, bracket means carried by said frame means for accommodatingthe hand gripping extremity of a fishing rod, said bracket meansincluding a lower support member for accommodating the portion of afishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishing reel supportingsection of a rod, and an upper laterally spaced support member foraccommodating the portion of a fishing rod positioned forwardly of saidreel supporting section (.) said upper and lower support members beingso disposed as to support a fishing rod in a position externally of andsubstantially tangential with respect to a wall of said container.
 2. Adevice for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 1 wherein saidupper and lower support members are substantially L-shaped each having arespective vertical portion and a respective horizontal portion wherebysaid hand gripping extremity is supported by said horizontal portions.3. A device for supporting a fishing rod according to claim 2 whereinsaid means for supporting said frame means includes hook meansco-operating with an upper edge of said outer wall whereby said framemeans is supported adjacent the outer wall of said container by saidhook means.
 4. A device for supporting a fishing rod in an operableposition on the outer wall of a container, as for example a bucket,including frame means, means for supporting said frame means on theouter wall of said container, bracket means carried by said frame meansfor accommodating the hand gripping extremity of a fishing rod, saidbracket means including a lower support member for accommodating theportion of a fishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishingreel supporting section of a rod, and an upper laterally spaced supportmember for accommodating the portion of a fishing rod positionedforwardly of said reel supporting section, said means for supportingsaid frame means further including means for rigidly holding said framemeans adjacent said outer wall.
 5. A device for supporting a fishing rodin an operable position on the outer wall of a container, as for examplea bucket, including frame means, means for supporting said frame meanson the outer wall of said container, bracket means carried by said framemeans for accommodating the hand gripping extremity of a fishing rod,said bracket means including a lower support member for accommodatingthe portion of a fishing rod positioned rearwardly of the normal fishingreel supporting section of a rod, an upper laterally spaced supportmember for accommodating the portion of a fishing rod positionedforwardly of said reel supporting section, a second lower support memberfor accommodating the portion of a fishing rod positioned rearwardly ofthe normal fishing reel supporting section of a rod, said second lowersupport member positioned directly below said upper support member, anda second upper support member for accommodating the portions of afishing rod positioned forwardly of said reel supporting section, saidsecond upper support member positioned directly above said lower supportmember whereby said
 6. A device for supporting a fishing rod accordingto claim 5 wherein all of said support members are substantiallyL-shaped having respective vertical and horizontal portions, thehorizontal portions of said lower and upper support members supportingsaid fishing rod in said operable position and the horizontal portionsof said second lower and upper support member supporting said fishingrod in said second operable position.
 7. A device for supporting afishing rod according to claim 6 wherein said means for supporting saidframe means includes hook means co-operating with an upper edge of saidouter wall whereby said frame means is supported adjacent the outer wallof said container by said hook means.
 8. A device for supporting afishing rod according to claim 7 wherein said means for supporting saidframe means further includes means for rigidly holding said frame meansadjacent said outer wall.